Key Verse: “Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. Look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will experience affliction for ten days. Be faithful to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. Let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will never be harmed by the second death.” (Revelation 2:10-11 CSB)
Church historians tell us that in the year AD 186, Roman officials burned a man named Polycarp at the stake for his faith in Jesus Christ. Polycarp served as the bishop or overseer of the church in Smyrna. Prior to his death, as soldiers attempted to nail him to the stake to hold him in place, he stopped them saying, “Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me also to remain the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from nails.” Shortly thereafter, Polycarp became the first recorded Christian martyr in post-New Testament history.
It is no coincidence then what Jesus wrote to the believers in Smyrna years earlier. In His letter to them in the second chapter of Revelation, Jesus identifies himself as “the First and the Last, the one who was dead but came to life” (v.8). Jesus is the Eternal One and the One who overcame death when He was raised to life on the third day.
This letter, unlike the one addressed to the church of Ephesus, has nothing negative to say to the believers. Nevertheless, Jesus’ words would likely still have been difficult to hear. Life was not easy for the followers of Jesus in Smyrna. They were facing affliction, poverty and slander because of their faith in Him.
Jesus let them know that it wasn’t going to get any easier. In fact, more suffering was on the way. He told them, “the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will experience affliction for ten days” (v.10). Like Daniel and his friends in the Old Testament who were tested in their faithfulness to God while in exile in Babylon (Daniel 1), the believers in Smyrna were about to face further trouble and tribulation because of Christ.
Jesus’ encouragement to them was simply this, “Be faithful to the point of death” (v.10). Do not waver or give up. Do not give into temptation or compromise your loyalty to Christ. Even if it costs you your life, stand firm. Trust God. Be faithful.
Jesus also said, “You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 10:22). Just as Jesus faced opposition and hatred but faithfully stood firm even to the point of death on the cross, He calls us to remain faithful to Him even if it costs us everything.
Why would we do that? Why choose faithfulness over compromise? Why choose suffering or hardship over personal comfort? Jesus attaches a promise to His call. To the one who remains faithful, “I will give you the crown of life” (v.10), He says. “The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death” (v.11). The promised hope for all who stand firm in Christ to the very end is eternal life forever with Him. It sounds worth it to me, don’t you think?
Ultimately, faithfulness is what God is looking for from each of us. He calls us to “be faithful” in our love for Him, our obedience, our engagement in the mission, our ministry, and our relationships with others. Following Jesus is not about personal comfort. It’s about being faithful in becoming who God has called us to be and in doing what He has entrusted us to do.
Will you choose the path of faithfulness today? Will you be faithful to Him whatever it looks like and whatever it costs you?
Prayer: Father, I want to be faithful, just as you are always faithful. Help me to do that today by your power and not my own. No matter how hard it gets or all that it may cost me, I choose to stand firm in you. Amen.
Author: Jonathan Miller has served in pastoral roles for more than 13 years in churches in Barrie, Oakville and Burlington, Ontario. He currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Prison Fellowship Canada, a ministry that mobilizes and equips local churches to engage in the restorative work of prisoners, ex-prisoners, their families, and victims across Canada. Jon holds degrees from McMaster University and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He and his wife Adrienne have been married since 2004, and live in Burlington, Ontario with their 4 children. Jon’s greatest passion is to know Jesus and to see lives transformed by Him and for Him.
