Today we are going to study what the Lord had to say to the church in the great cultural city of Pergamum. This church also represents a church age lasting from about 312 AD to 606 AD.
Pergamum had four major pagan cults: the cult of Zeus, Athena, Dionysus, and Asclepius. The temple of Asclepius was especially large and ornate, and it was actually the most prominent building in the entire city. Asclepius was the Roman god of medicine, so it was a common practice in Pergamum for a sick person to enter and even spend the night in the temple of Asclepius where a mass of non-poisonous snakes lived. It was believed that if one of these snakes slithered over a sick person, the person would be healed. The god Asclepius himself was usually represented by the image of a male figure holding a long staff about which a snake was twined. This staff was known as the "rod of Asclepius" and we still see this image used today in drugstores and on prescription bottles. As we go along today, it will be important for us to keep in mind that the main center of worship in Pergamum involved a snake cult, for the Lord will say something directly related to it.
The Lord begins His message to the church at Pergamum like this: "To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: 'These are the words of Him who has the sharp, double-edged sword." (Revelation 2:12) You'll recall that in Revelation 1, John said Christ had a sharp, double-edged sword coming out of His mouth. We talked about how this wasn't a literal sword but that it symbolized the word of God. Why does Christ choose this particular aspect of Himself when speaking to the believers of Pergamum? I think it's because, though they lived in such an idolatrous city, they held fast to God's word. Pergamum was filled with statues and temples of false gods. A person couldn't turn to the left or to the right without encountering something sinful. The temptation to give in to the culture must have been strong, but the believers of Pergamum refused to deny the name of Christ.
Referring to the temple of Asclepius and to its snake cult, the Lord says, "I know where you live---where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to My name. You did not renounce your faith in Me, not even in the days of Antipas, My faithful witness, who was put to death in your city---where Satan lives." (Revelation 2:13) Satan had such a stronghold in Pergamum that the people there actually worshiped his image---the image he bore when he enticed Adam and Eve to fall from grace in the Garden of Eden. There are not many places in the world, and not many periods of history, in which Satan could be so bold. For most people, he has to disguise idolatry as something else, but sin was so rampant in Pergamum that he could show himself as he really is---as a slimy and slithering seducer of souls.
We don't know who Antipas was, but he was apparently a Christian of Pergamum who was put to death for his faith. It could be that the city leaders killed him as an example to the other Christians, as a message saying, "You're next!" The Lord commends the believers for standing strong even when threatened with death.
The Lord now speaks words of criticism for some (not all) of the church members. "Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality." (Revelation 2:14) We find the story of Balaam and Balak in the Old Testament book of Numbers. Balak, the king of Moab, hired the prophet Balaam to curse the nation of Israel. Balaam was not a false prophet, but his love of money outweighed his desire to serve the Lord. For the right sum, he was willing to speak against the Lord's people. However, when he tried to fulfill the job he was paid to do, nothing but blessings for Israel came out of his mouth. When the people of Moab saw that their plot against Israel had failed, they decided instead to try to tempt the men of Israel into marrying the pagan women of Moab, thus leading them into idolatry. The armies of Moab couldn't defeat Israel militarily, so they hoped to defeat them spiritually. In our passage today Jesus is saying that there are some members of the church of Pergamum who are willing to compromise where sexual immorality and idolatry are concerned. Satan had come to the realization that he couldn't defeat the believers of Pergamum with persecution and hardship, so he sought to defeat them from within by tempting them with the sexual immorality of the Roman culture and with the lavish feasts in which fine meats and wines had been offered to idols before being enjoyed to excess.
The church age which Pergamum represents was an age of excess and materialism. It was an age in which the church had to constantly struggle with its desire to be worldly. From the third century AD to the sixth century AD, new churches were popping up all the time in major cities that were heavily influenced by the sinful Roman culture, and sometimes the church members gave in to the culture and became almost indistinguishable from unbelievers. I once heard someone say that the biggest threat to the church is not persecution, but prosperity. I think there's a lot of truth in that. When we are being openly opposed, we see the attack coming and brace ourselves to stand firm. But prosperity makes us soft. It makes us lazy and complacent. That's what was happening in the literal church of Pergamum and in the church age that Pergamum symbolizes.
There is one other thing going on within the church that is a threat to the believers. "Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth." (Revelation 2:15-16) The Lord mentioned the Nicolaitans in His message to the church at Ephesus. It is believed to reference a movement within some churches to allow only the church leaders to handle the Scriptures. There was an attitude that the common people (the laity) could not be trusted to interpret the Scriptures for themselves. The problem with this is, it put church leaders in a position to be able to deceive the church members. The church leaders could interpret or change the word of God however it suited them, and the common people wouldn't know they were being taught false doctrine. The Lord warns those who are handling His word incorrectly that, if they do not repent, He will come and judge them guilty based on what His word (which they have altered) actually says.
The Lord concludes with these words: "Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it." (Revelation 2:17) The hidden manna may symbolize the inner strength of the believer. It is the power of Christ that sustains them, no matter what comes against them.
A white stone represented a number of different things in ancient cultures, so it's difficult to say with any certainty what the Lord means. Of the various opinions I studied, I think the most logical explanation is that the white stone is related to those given for winning Roman athletic competitions. Winners were given white stones with their names written on them, and these stones granted the winners certain privileges. The winners of some events were guaranteed an income from the government for life. In other cases, possessing the white stones guaranteed them admission to every great party, athletic event, and cultural event for the rest of their lives. Possessing this stone gave them a "free ticket", so to speak, to the best of the best of everything.
So I think that what Christ may have been saying when He promises the hidden manna and the white stone is that He will forever be the Provider and the Protector of those who trust in Him. He will supply everything we need for victorious Christian living. Not only that, but when we go to live with Him forever, we will receive the things He has prepared for us: things so wonderful that no eye has ever seen them, no ear has ever heard of them, and no mind has ever imagined them. (1 Corinthians 2:9)
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