Thru the Bible

Steve Schwetz: One moment can change everything. Maybe it was a health issue that knocked the wind out of you, or a mistake that you made, or the heartbreak of rejection or grief. We'd do almost anything to avoid that kind of pain, but God's Word reminds us that He can use even our deepest struggles for our good.

I'm Steve Schwetz, and in our study of the New Testament book of Revelation, our teacher, Dr. J. Vernon McGee, addresses the critical question, "Why do God's children suffer?" And one of his answers may surprise you. As we arrive at Revelation chapter 2, beginning at verse 8, we're going to hear about the suffering the people in the church in Smyrna experienced. But first, here's a quick introduction by Dr. McGee.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee: And it's not accidental, but providential that we've come to the book of Revelation at this time because, very candidly, the world has come to a sad state today. And it's quite evident that there are problems that are facing the world right now which man cannot solve, in spite of the fact that a very wealthy banker in New York City is reported to have said that there is not a problem in the world but what man can solve if he works at it long enough.

Well, man has been working now several thousand years to solve the problems of this world, and it's in a bigger mess than when he started. And so we believe this book will throw a great deal of light on what's happening today.

Steve Schwetz: That's so true, isn't it? The world isn't getting better, but God's plan has never changed, and His Word gives us the perspective and hope that we need. Before we open Revelation together and hear more from Dr. McGee, let's pause to read a couple letters from fellow Bible Bus passengers who are finding strength in God's Word during their own difficult days.

First we hear from a listener who tells us what he learned from our study in Job: "When I first became a believer and started reading the Bible, I didn't fully understand many things, including the book of Job. The things Job's friends said about God actually seemed right to me at the time, and I couldn't quite grasp why they were wrong. I read through it, but without much insight or clarity.

Later, though, this program and the in-depth study of Job, I was able to finally understand what had once confused me. God opened my eyes to see that behind every trial He allows in our lives, there's a blessing, a purpose, and ultimately an eternal reward. The book of Job taught me to trust in God alone and to keep pressing forward, even when life feels heavy and uncertain. During the most difficult seasons of my life, I've found myself returning to this book again and again. It reminds me that even in silence, even in suffering, God is near and He's faithful."

Next, from a Bengali Muslemi listener in Bangladesh we hear this: "My daughter had been suffering from brain cancer for the past three to four years. We visited many doctors, but there was no improvement in her condition. Then I started listening to your systematic Bible lessons and my faith in God began to grow stronger. These teachings encouraged me to stand firm in faith and gave me deep spiritual peace.

Just a few days ago, we visited the doctor again and miraculously my daughter was declared completely healed. She is now able to do all her work normally. I truly thank God for this miracle and for using the audio lessons to strengthen my faith and give me hope during the most difficult time of my life."

Well, you can join us in praying for Thru the Bible as it goes out in Bengali Muslemi and more than 250 other languages around the world. Just sign up for our world prayer team at ttb.org. And of course, you know we'd love to hear how God is using His Word in your life. You can drop us a note in the feedback section of our app; that's super easy.

You can also email us at biblebus@ttb.org. You can always write to us at Box 7100, Pasadena, California, 91109. In Canada, Box 25325, London, Ontario, N6C 6B1. You can also leave a voicemail message at 1-800-65-BIBLE. Now let's pray for one another as we open up God's Word together.

Father, would You shine the light of Your Word into the hearts of all who are listening today. And through Your Spirit, Lord, comfort and sustain those who are suffering. We look to You now to teach us. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Here's more of our study of Revelation 2 on Thru the Bible with Dr. J. Vernon McGee.

Dr. J. Vernon McGee: Now friends, we’re back in this second chapter of Revelation. Chapters two and three deal with the things that are—church things. We have here seven letters of the Lord Jesus to seven churches that were in Asia Minor at that particular time, that’s what we know as Asia Minor, modern Turkey, however, today. And these seven churches were picked out for a very definite purpose because each one of them sets before us a certain segment of church history, and we’re well on the way today.

We saw last time that the church in Ephesus, the first letter, represented the apostolic church, beginning with the day of Pentecost and going down to about 100 AD. Now we come to the church in Smyrna, and this is the martyr church. This is the church that died for Him. Now the word Smyrna—we get our word myrrh from it. Actually, it means suffering. And this city is still in existence.

The name it has today, the Turkish name, may lead you astray, but it’s İzmir. But it’s the same city, and it’s been in continuous occupation from the time it was founded, and it goes back a long ways. I have been there. In fact, we stay in İzmir when we visit that area. There’s a lovely hotel there, the Grand Efes Hotel, and it’s in a very commercial city. There are those that tell us that İzmir will someday, and not too many days hence, it will be larger than Istanbul.

It will certainly be a larger commercial center. And because of that and the tremendous population there, and it practically covers up so much of the ruins of the ancient city that you’re apt to miss the beauty of it. Now I have some pictures that I have taken, that slide I use when I give an illustrated message, and I try to call attention to the beauty of that harbor. It’s one of the most beautiful harbors, and a very large one, by the way. It’s one of the loveliest cities of Asia.

It’s called a flower; it’s called a crown, an ornament, and it’s been called the crown of all Asia. And the acropolis is on Mount Pagus. In fact, the early city that goes back to about 2000 was a Hittite city at that time. It was around the slope of Mount Pagus. And later on, Alexander the Great had a great deal to do with the building of it, the city that was so beautiful. It had wide boulevards along the slopes of Mount Pagus, and then on top was the city.

It was called the crowning city because it had a row of flowers and a hedge that went all the way around, and then myrtle trees that went all the way around. And it was adorned with beautiful temples and noble buildings. There was the temple of Zeus, the temple of Cybele, and Cybele was actually Diana, and a temple of Aphrodite and Apollo and Asclepius. And also, Smyrna had a theater, and it had an odeon, that is, a music center. It was the home of music.

And there was a stadium there, and it was in that stadium where Polycarp, who was a student of John the apostle, and of course knew him—he was the bishop of Smyrna, and he was martyred in the stadium, burned alive in 155 AD. Now in Christian literature, Smyrna means suffering. Saint John, in his letter addressed to the church, said, "I know your suffering and your poverty." Now it is one of the few cities that is still in existence today, having had continuous habitation from the very beginning.

And one other church that the Lord Jesus addresses—Philadelphia. The two churches that He had no word of condemnation for, these are the two churches that have had continuous existence. None of the others. Their lampstand has really been moved, but there are a few Christians in Smyrna. They’re undercover. I’m told there are no Christians in Ephesus, that little Muslim Turkish town. Now in İzmir there are a few, and they have made a very indirect contact with us when we’ve been there.

They do not want to come out in the open because Christians are persecuted over there even today in Turkey. Now there’s a great deal we could say about this city, but we want now to see something of the mechanics of the format that the Lord Jesus uses in writing. Now this city covers the period from about 100 AD to approximately 314 AD, from the death of John to the Edict of Toleration by Constantine, which was given in 313 AD and it ended the persecution of Christians, not only in Smyrna but all over the Roman Empire, and especially Rome.

We find that the leaders of the church were first killed at the beginning. But now let’s come to the text. And I’m coming here to verse eight of chapter two. And we have here the Lord Jesus addressing this church, and it is His briefest message, and it was all commendatory—everything that He has to say was good. Now let me read verse eight. And I’m going to read from my translation here: "To the messenger of the church in Smyrna write: These things saith the first and the last, who became dead and lived."

The Lord Jesus will reach back and take out of that vision of the things thou hast seen—the glorified Christ as our great High Priest in the midst of the lampstand. He’ll take out one of the descriptions and one of the things that’s said about Him to address each church, and I think each one has a particular reference to the church. And He chose from the vision of Himself the first and the last, who became dead and lived. Now the first and the last means there was nothing before Him and there's nothing to follow Him.

He has the final disposition of all things. He is the one in charge. Now the persecuted believers needed to know this—that He was the one in charge and that it was in the plan and purpose of God. Now He said "who became dead and lived." That has a real message for martyrs. It speaks of the death and resurrection of Christ, and His experience with death identified Him with the five millions who were martyred during this period.

Foxe says that there were five million that died for Christ in this period. He was triumphant over death and can save to the uttermost those who are enduring persecution and martyrdom. Now He has something to say here to them. He says, "I know your works." This is verses nine and 10: "I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." Now there are seven things here that He says to this church, and these are the things the Lord commended in the church. He mentions tribulation first. Actually, "works" are not in the best manuscript here, and I personally have left it out.

If you want to include it, fine. But tribulation here is that we need to understand, of course, it's not the Great Tribulation—it's trouble. And since the awful persecution of the church by the Roman emperors is not called the Great Tribulation, surely our small sufferings that we are enduring today couldn’t be called the Great Tribulation. So that they were suffering for Christ. And the second thing that He commended them for: their poverty.

And He denotes their lack of material possessions. You know the early church was made up largely of the poorer classes. When the wealthy believed, their property was confiscated because of their faith. He says, "But thou art rich." And that denotes the spiritual wealth of the church—blessed with all spiritual blessings. And notice the contrast here to the church in Laodicea. We’ll come to it later, but the church in Laodicea was rich, but our Lord said, "You’re really poor and you don’t know it."

I get rather amused about this, and I speak in several places where there are conferences and they like to tell me that there are several millionaires in the congregation. Now I’m glad they tell me that, because I’d sure never found it out any other way. You’d never know it by their support of the Thru the Bible radio program, I can assure you. Well, anyway, they like to speak of prominent people that are members of their church or rich people that are members of the church.

You know the early church, this martyr church, couldn’t brag about that. They had slaves in there, ex-slaves, runaway slaves, freed slaves, poor people. Not any in there that was rich, not many that had property. He also says that there were Jews outwardly. You know there’s only been a remnant down through the years of these people that have truly been God’s people. Paul says, "All Israel is not Israel."

The thing that makes the Jew a Jew, and actually makes him one that belongs to the nation Israel, it’s his religion. That is the thing that identifies him. Actually, he was a Syrian, that’s what the Lord said to him—"a Syrian ready to perish was my father." That was the picture of him. That’s what he was nationally; that’s what he was racially. But now they had denied their religion, and though they might say they’re Jews, actually when a Jew gives up his religion, there’s a question whether he’s a Jew or not.

And in Germany, many tried to do that, by the way. Now Smyrna was a city of culture in which many Jews had discarded their belief in the Old Testament. It was a very wealthy city from the very word go, and it is today. And the fourth thing He says: "Fear nothing." That’s the encouragement of the Lord to His own in the midst of persecution. This is the second time in this book that the Lord has offered this encouragement.

History tells us that multitudes went to their death singing praises to God. Then the fifth thing, it says the devil and Satan, they’re the same person. And we’re going to look at this fearful creature later on, but Christ labels him as being responsible for the suffering of the saints. We tend to blame the immediate person or circumstance which serves as Satan’s tool, but the Lord Jesus goes back to the root trouble.

Very frankly, if I may inject a personal word, in my book Why Do God's Children Suffer?, I could classify and pigeonhole everything that had come to me under the different ways: God judged me, God chastened me, but this last act was puzzled. And quite a few people began to write in, said, "We believe Satan is responsible." And that, I think, is the explanation of the reason I’ve had so many physical problems.

Now the sixth thing that He mentioned here: "You'll have tribulation ten days." There were 10 intense periods of persecution by 10 Roman emperors. And I want to mention those. I think it’s important. First there was Nero, from 64 to 68 AD, and Paul was beheaded under the reign of Nero. Then Domitian, from 95 to 96, and he was lots worse than Nero, and John was exiled during that period. And then Trajan, 104 to 117, and Ignatius was burned at the stake.

And then Marcus Aurelius, 161 to 180, and Polycarp was martyred in that period. Then there was Severus—and I won’t give dates—but Maximinus, Decius, Valerian, Aurelian, and then finally Diocletian, 303 to 313. He was the worst emperor of all. Now here you have these 10 Roman emperors that led in an awful persecution of Christians. Now the seventh thing that He mentions here—they were faithful unto death.

That means they were martyred. Now He says He’s going to give them a crown of life. And this is a special crown for those who suffer. It’s quite interesting that the Lord has special crowns, and I know a lot of wonderful saints that are going to get that crown someday. And I’d like to just say that to so many people that are listening today on a bed of pain, or you may be an invalid and you’ve wondered—well, He’s got something good for you someday.

You’re going to get something that no one else will be getting except those in your group. James had said this, if you recall back in James 1:12: "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation or testing: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." And that crown of life means you’re going to really live it up someday. My friend, what a glorious things in prospect for you folk that are invalids or on beds of pain of sickness.

May God bless you. My, what a glorious thing it’s in prospect here. Now He says in verse 11: "He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches." Always He says that. Do you hear Him? Is He speaking to you? "He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death." I think Dwight L. Moody put it like this: "He that is born once will have to die twice. He that’s born twice will only die once, and he may not even have to die that one time."

And he’ll not be hurt of the second death, and that is the death that no believer will experience. The first death concerns the body. The second death is the soul and spirit, eternal separation from God. That’s what it means. No believer will have to undergo that. Now we come to the letter of Christ to the church in Pergamum. And İzmir is the great city where we all go to today when we go to that land.

The airport is there, the hotels are there. Now you go about 65 miles south to get to Ephesus, but you go about 70 miles north to get to Pergamum. Now these are the three great cities. They were royal cities, and they vied one with the other. İzmir was the great commercial center. Pergamum was the great religious center. And actually Ephesus was the great political center. There’s where the Roman emperors came, to Ephesus.

And I didn’t have time to go in it, but I’ve been down that beautiful marble boulevard there that’s on the side of the mountain. And along there's the fountain, actually, of Trajan, but a temple—there is the Temple of Hadrian. They worshiped the emperors there. It was a great political center, primarily. But now we come to the great religious center, and it’s going to be where Satan’s headquarters was.

And actually, it's in the most beautiful spot that’s in that land. And as we’ve said before, it looks like the devil manages always to get those beautiful spots. Let me say just this word about it today in closing. It was a highly fortified stronghold city. It was the capital of the kingdom of Pergamum. It was a royal city with its acropolis dominating the whole region of the valley of the Caicus.

The Caicus river flowed down in any direction you look. On any side, you see the most beautiful valley you’ve ever seen. And Pergamum was the center of evils because of its many pagan temples: the temples of Athena, Demeter, Hera, Dionysus, Asclepius—and he was the god of healing—and the great Altar of Zeus. They stand like a throne on top of the acropolis. John says to this church that this is where Satan’s throne was.

And we’re going to see next time why it was that. Sir William Ramsay says it was a city that deserved the name of a royal city, high on top of this mountain, a great city, by the way. And we’re going to see that next time. But we’ll have to wait until then, and until then, may God richly bless you, my beloved.

Steve Schwetz: To download Dr. McGee's booklet "Why Do God's Children Suffer?", look for it in our app or online at ttb.org. And if we can help you find another resource to deepen your study of God's Word, call us at 1-800-65-BIBLE. And join us again as the Bible Bus rolls through your neighborhood, and I hope that you'll invite a friend to hop aboard with you. I'm Steve Schwetz. For all of us here at Thru the Bible, we're grateful for the privilege of studying God's Word alongside you. Until Jesus comes again.

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