Pastor's Update
Tolerance in the Church
By Rev. Dallas E. Henry
Aug 8, 2008 - 10:00:00 AM

Revelation 2:12-17

In this Part 2; Tolerance in the Church, we are looking at the church at Pergamos. The dictation of the Lord was penned and sent to this church. 

The city of Pergamos was a capital of the region under Roman rule.  It was the farthest north of the Seven Churches and a great and flourishing area when John wrote this missive. This city was situated sixty-four miles north of Smyrna, in Mysia, on a lofty hill, and was a great political and religious center. 

Pergamos would rival Ephesus for being a center of world religions.  There were temples to Zeus, Athena, and Dionysus, as well as the grove and temple of Asklepios, the. so called, god of healing, called the god of Pergamum. This temple even included a university for medical study.  Pergamum was the first city in Asia (A.D. 29) with a temple for the worship of Augustus (Octavius Caesar) and was considered the very center of emperor-worship.

The church faced great opposition.  They were not merely in a satanic place, but the very seat of Satan. This definition was given either for the idol worship or the presence of the ungodly rule of Rome. Revelation 17 speaks of a city on seven hills, which would seem to point to this city.  Whatever the cause of the name, the city was so wicked that the Lord said it was Satan’s seat of rule.

The church was also in a very strategic place which raises some questions for the church today: Where should or will the church be in the last days?  Will we be among those that hate the Gospel?  Will we be among those that choose darkness rather than light? 

The world hates the Gospel, and we who are followers of  Christ are in the world, but not of the world.  In John 17, we find the prayer of our Lord.  As Jesus prayed, He pleaded for His disciples until, in verse 20, He prayed for everyone that would ever be redeemed . . . that’s us.  In His prayer, He reveals that the world would hate those that follow Him.  It says in verses 13-20, “And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.”

This church dwelt in this wicked place and at the same time possessed the commission of the Lord.  This is a very important principle: circumstances never relieve us from our responsibility as children of God.  The commission statements of Matthew 28:19-20 and Acts 1:8 were valid for this church and are also valid for the church today.  Some want to relinquish responsibility based upon a less than favorable environment, but God’s commands stand.

Let us consider the communication from the Lord.  In verse 12, Jesus comes with “the sharp sword.”  This sword is the Word of God.  It is used by the church, and rightfully so.  The Word of God is for us, and to us, but it does not belong to us, it is the possession of Christ.  That is why it is important to handle the Word very carefully.  Today some seem to think it is okay to water down the Word, and even to lower Biblical standards, but we must never stop thinking about the Bible reverently and fearfully, for it is God’s Word, and it belongs to Him.  We must carefully and prayerfully expound its teachings, but never demean its value.  Some recent “modern” English translations have attempted to modernize/minimize God’s Word to the extreme of omitting doctrinal verses, and making it “gender neutral.”  Sadly, it appears that man has attempted to play God and has caused confusion instead of enhancing the study of the Word.  How could this have happened?  Possibly because modern religion has forgotten to whom the Word of God belongs.

In Revelation 1:16, John tells us that the Lord “had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in His strength.”  This two-edged sword would smite the sin of the church.  In Hebrews 4:12, we see the Word of God described as “quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

We can read the Word, study the Word, teach the Word, and preach the Word, but we do not do the work of the Word.  It is the power of God’s Word through the Holy Spirit that changes and challenges lives.

The Word also strengthens the saints of the church.  John explained this in an earlier writing.  He said in 1 John 2:14, “I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known Him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.”  This writing was under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and was for the benefit of the church.  It is to help us overcome the wicked one.  This is exactly what the church at Pergamos needed.  It needed the Word to overcome Satan in this wicked town.

In the Lord’s communication, we not only notice the Sword, but we notice His seeing.  To all seven churches, Jesus declares, “I know thy works.”  When we are not faithful, He knows.  When we serve Him half-heartedly, He knows.  When carnality seems to overcome our spirits, He knows.  When we are consecrated to His cause, He knows.  Psalm 139:2 declares, “Thou knowest my down sitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.”  Jesus knows where we are in our walk with Him.

In verse 13, we see the stand they took.  They were willing to be marked as Christ’s.  They did not shy away from being known as Christians.  They were commended for holding fast the name of Christ, even in the face of great persecution.  It would seem that the martyr that is mentioned, Antipas, was killed in relation to the wickedness of the city.  He was killed among them, which means in their midst.  Some believe a mob overtook him in the streets close to where the church met.  Antipas does not seem to be named in any records of martyrs.  It is good to note that though the world may not see this martyr as one of notable worth, Jesus did.  The faithful are noticed by Christ.

The church was faithful not to deny the Lord.  Most of the church did not waiver in their personal stand in Christianity, but there was still a problem. This problem they had should be familiar to the church today.  In verse 14-15, we find that they sanctioned certain sins.  They lowered their standard of righteousness by allowing some to remain in their midst that followed the same failures as Balaam.  Balaam could not curse the nation of Israel, and he did bless them 3 times, but he persuaded Balak to deceive them to compromise and Israel committed great sins, seen in Numbers 25.  In verses 1-3, it says, “And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.  And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.  And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.”  Later in Numbers 31:16, additional compromise was found in Israel due to Balaam, it says, “Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.”  The church was allowing sexual impurity and idol worship.  They embraced the doctrine of tolerance.

They gave into a System of Compromise, defined by the Nicolaitines.  God did not just dislike this doctrine, He hated it.  It has been said of this group: These impure heretics sprung up in the time of the apostolic church, but their doctrines were not received, and their deeds were hated.  This seems to have influenced the doctrines of the church of Rome, which took place in this period. 

As the doctrines of Balaam and the Nicolaitines were connected, it was a problem of the abuse of their liberty in Christ.  They were liberated from the law, but never freed to sin.  Galatians 5:13 tells us, “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”  Paul continues in verse 16 to say, “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”

The responsibility of the church is to reach the dying world with the Gospel.  In verse 17 we see a promise of a heavenly feast, displayed as hidden manna.  Jewish tradition says that whenever the Temple was destroyed, that Jeremiah took the manna that was in the Ark of the Covenant and hid it in an unknown cave in a mountain, and when the Messiah came, He would bring that hidden pot of manna out of the cave, BUT IT GETS BETTER!  In John 6:49-51, Jesus taught, “Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.  This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.  I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

This Manna will be only for those who overcome by the blood of the Lamb; different from the wilderness, it is the food reserved for the righteous.

Pergamos was a church that did not denounce Christ, but dishonored Him by their compromise.  They would not deny the virgin birth or the resurrection, but beyond the majors, everything was minor.  They were a church of tolerance. 

There are actually churches established in our day that could be called the Church of Tolerance!  The liberal theologians and politicians that yell for tolerance are the most intolerant of all.  Tolerance is indifference to sin.  Indifference to sin will lead to blind carnality. With the church steeped in complacency and carnality, many will die without Christ.  Tolerance is a dangerous doctrine that has always existed.

Sin often looks harmless, but there are always unseen consequences.  When we venture out, we will find that sin will take us deeper than we intended to go, and we will go down and ultimately  dishonor the Lord.  The church needs to reject the so-called tolerance of today and get back to following the teachings and standards of the two edged Sword.

Oh that we would not dishonor Christ by our tolerance.

Oh that the Church would be found faithful.

Mike Heath; Influential Leader

Gays Want to Boot Dr. Dobson

The Culture of Tolerance

The Gospel of Intolerance

The New Tolerance

Example of Tolerance; Lady Under Fire

Join The ADF Pulpit Initiative

J. I. Packer Speaks Out on Homosexual Marriage

Putting Adolescents At Risk

Some good news

Christmas In July

Is It Wrong To Pray For Rain?

The Pursuit of Teen Girl Purity

The League was formed in 1897 to name and confront sin.  We do so because of the love of Christ, knowing that He is the only eternal answer to a sin-infestation.  Psychology isn't enough.  Counselors can't do it.  There isn't enough money in all the world to hire enough politicans and policemen to reign in sin and the devil.  The only solution is both the most costly and least expensive.  The only solution is the righteousness of Jesus Christ -- the gospel.

Consider this your invitation to partner with The Christian Civic League of Maine as we proclaim the uncompromised truth of God’s Word in the public square.  The League has a public voice that churches and even denominations don’t have.  By supporting the League you are becoming that public witness.

Thank you for your prayers and support.  You can also invite Michael and Paulie Heath to your church for a League Sunday.  Mike is prepared to share a message on Christian Citizenship and Paulie is prepared to sing a few song specials.  You can contact Paulie Heath at (207) 215-6886 to make the arrangements.