To the angel of the church in Smyrna
Chris Cooke · What The Spirit Says
20 September 2026
https://media.glenabbey.church/talks/to-the-angel-of-the-church-in-smyrna

[0:01] To the angel of the church in Smyrna, write, These are the words of him who is the first and the last, who died and came to life again.
[0:13] I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich.
[0:20] I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
[0:27] Do not be afraid of what you're about to suffer.
[0:29] I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for 10 days.
[0:37] Be faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor's crown.
[0:45] Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
[0:51] The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all.
[0:56] by the second death.
[1:01] As with last week, I'm going to encourage you to join with me again in your imaginations and inhabit, imagine what it would be like to have been part of this church in Smyrna.
[1:14] That's why I showed you that video.
[1:15] It's not a perfect analogy, but it helps us to do that.
[1:19] And we're traveling.
[1:20] This letter would have gone from the island of Patmos, where John was in exile, to Ephesus, the closest city, and then the messenger would have traveled north about 50 miles to Smyrna.
[1:30] And so imagine being part of this church.
[1:35] And let's think about the city first that we are in.
[1:40] This is a city that you're proud to be a part of.
[1:43] It is a city of great, stunning beauty.
[1:47] We call ourselves the crown of Asia.
[1:49] There's this beautiful harbor that sweeps up into the city and then sweeps up further under the slopes of Mount Pagos where there are these beautiful pieces of architecture, this sort of circle of buildings arranged in such a way that it almost looks like the city itself is being crowned.
[2:10] That's interesting in terms of what Jesus says to this city here.
[2:14] And Smyrnans are very proud of their city.
[2:17] No one in Smyrna is going to let you tell them that Ephesus is superior to them.
[2:25] And that fierceness of pride, it goes deeper because this once was a city that died and came to life again.
[2:33] Do you see the connections here?
[2:36] It died in the sense of it was almost destroyed completely by the Lydians around 600 BC, but then restored by the successors of Alexander the Great in 290 BC.
[2:46] So there's a real deep pride in this city, this phoenix that has risen from the flames.
[2:53] And then there's no city that we know of that is more deeply dedicated to and loyal to the empire.
[3:02] With our temple dedicated to Dia Roma, this temple dedicated to Rome personified as a goddess, and our status as well, granted to us as Temple of the Guardian, when decades ago we were chosen as the location for the building of another temple, out of all the other cities, we were chosen for this temple dedicated to Tiberius.
[3:30] dedication to the empire and to the emperor is unrivaled in the province.
[3:39] But then, of course, we are people of the city, but we're also people of this Church of Christ within the city.
[3:47] And as people of this Church of Christ, we are dedicated to another God, the one true living God.
[3:54] And his Son, Jesus Christ, and we're surrounded then by a city worshipping Caesar as a god while we're not.
[4:07] And so life obviously is very dangerous.
[4:12] And for a time we found refuge in the Roman authorities' association of Christianity with the old religion of Judaism.
[4:20] You see, Judaism is a religion acceptable to the empire.
[4:24] It's tolerated.
[4:25] It's granted protection by the authorities.
[4:28] Jews aren't forced to worship Caesar as a god.
[4:31] They can offer sacrifices to him just as far as him being their ruler.
[4:38] But as we'll come to later, the refuge of that association has crumbled away, leaving us, this Church of Christ in Smyrna, exposed We're no longer seen by the authorities as a Jewish sect, but rather as this new religion, and the authorities don't tolerate new religion, especially groups like ours, groups that the authorities call atheists, funnily enough,
[5:07] because we don't worship Caesar as God.
[5:11] And
[5:14] it's not just the authorities, but everyone around us who treats us with a level of suspicion.
[5:21] We are the treacherous, unpatriotic Jesus followers who refuse to sprinkle incense in front of the bust of the emperor because we say Jesus is Lord.
[5:35] And as a result, life as a Christian has become increasingly tough.
[5:39] That refusal to involve ourselves in the cult of the empire, which permeates every level of society from top to bottom, Well, that has all sorts of fallout.
[5:50] We're all, to some extent, we're all social pariahs in our own city.
[5:56] But we're also facing deep animosity, maybe from old friends, maybe from family members.
[6:06] Many of us have lost jobs.
[6:07] Many of us are struggling to trade.
[6:09] Many of us are struggling to get by.
[6:11] Many of us are finding that people will not sell to us the essentials that we need just to live and get through each day today.
[6:22] So with all that in mind then, as we imagine what it might have been like a little bit to be this church, what does Jesus say to them?
[6:31] And as I said at the beginning, he says something very specific to them about who he is.
[6:38] Words they've already heard spoken to John when he falls at the feet of Jesus after this vision that he receives.
[6:44] And he wants them to know specifically for them that these are the words of him who is the first and the last, the one who died, and came to life again.
[6:56] Again, imagine being in this church in Smyrna and hearing these words spoken to you.
[7:03] Imagine just being surrounded and oppressed by this power of the empire,
[7:11] played out in everyone that you know, and you just being part of this church and feeling tiny and helpless and pathetic.
[7:24] and hopeless and asking, is all that we are going through, is all that I am going through worth any of this?
[7:35] And then you hear Jesus speak directly to you, this little church on your knees, saying, I am the first and the last, the Alpha and the Omega.
[7:43] I am the one who is and who was and who is to come.
[7:46] I am the one true God.
[7:49] There is no other rock but me.
[7:53] And as Jesus is saying this, it's almost like this compare and contrast.
[7:58] You know, Caesar and Rome were not there in the beginning,
[8:03] but I am the word who was in the beginning.
[8:06] Caesar and Rome will not be there in the end.
[8:09] They will fall, however impossible that looks to you now, church in Smyrna.
[8:17] But I am the one who is to come.
[8:18] I am the last.
[8:21] I'm the one who died and rose again.
[8:22] I'm the one who defeated death.
[8:24] I am the one who looked like I was utterly broken, trampled down, defeated, and yet the supposed means of my defeat, well, God made those the means of my ultimate victory.
[8:42] Right now, things might look pathetic to you, church, hopeless, desperate, but there's a bigger story going on that you can't see.
[8:49] A story of victory that I am bringing to conclusion.
[8:54] Because I'm the only one, not Caesar, I'm the only one truly sovereign over history, the 1st and the last, the one who has defeated death.
[9:05] So he tells this church in Smyrna who he is.
[9:09] And then he goes on to tell them as the one who walks among the lampstands, as the one who sees them,
[9:16] what he sees and knows about them.
[9:18] He knows their afflictions.
[9:23] How important it is to know that Jesus sees what we're going through.
[9:27] He knows their tribulation, all he suffered for his name up to now.
[9:32] He has seen their poverty, he has seen these deep financial struggles that they have, that actually if they were just to compromise a little bit would be over in a flash, would be removed.
[9:44] If they find some sort of middle ground just to appease the authorities with some sort of little, some sort of token of dedication towards the empire and the emperor, well, actually, they wouldn't have the struggles that they're having.
[9:56] But he sees their faithfulness in that.
[9:59] And
[10:01] he knows, too, the heartbreaking catalyst for the increase in the persecution that has come about more recently.
[10:11] And that's this specific group of Jews in the city who have embarked on a destructive campaign of slanderous accusation against them.
[10:22] And for whatever reason, this group of Jews have come to hate this church.
[10:28] Maybe it's seeing people from the synagogue converted and turning to the way.
[10:36] Maybe it's because these Christians have enjoyed this protection under the banner of Judaism, and these people are thinking, how are they hanging onto our coattails
[10:47] and staying out of sight of the Roman authorities because the Romans think that they are part of, they belong to us?
[10:53] For whatever reason, this group of Jews have decided to make this church as obvious as possible, and as obnoxious looking as possible to the Roman authorities.
[11:07] And imagine then, like these people might be people that you know and have known,
[11:14] but it's them that have put you in the crosshairs of Roman persecution.
[11:19] Imagine the feeling.
[11:21] And here's what Jesus says.
[11:23] What an assessment of this group of Jews he gives to this church.
[11:29] Jesus, of course, brought up in Judaism himself, John, who is writing through, a proud Jew himself, but here, his declaration about this group of Jews.
[11:38] They say they are Jews, but they are not.
[11:40] Instead, they are a synagogue of Satan.
[11:45] Now, we've got to be careful here.
[11:46] This isn't a broad brush dismiss.
[11:49] dismissal of every Jew, but of this group, of their motives and of their actions.
[11:54] It's an assessment actually that we've heard before in John's gospel when Jesus is speaking to another group of Jews and he says this to them.
[12:03] If God were your father, you would love me.
[12:07] For I have come here from God.
[12:08] I've not come on my own.
[12:09] God sent me.
[12:10] Why is my language not clear to you?
[12:13] because you're unable to hear what I say.
[12:15] You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desires.
[12:21] And he was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him.
[12:26] When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies, yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.
[12:36] We've heard this assessment before, and these Jews in Smyrna
[12:43] whispering, accusing, putting the spotlight on these Christians with lies.
[12:52] They're a synagogue of Satan because they are accusers carrying out the desires of the great accuser.
[12:57] That's what the word Satan means.
[13:00] They're not true Jews.
[13:03] Not the true people of God, because in the words of Paul in Romans 2, a person is not a Jew who is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical.
[13:12] No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is circumcision of the heart by the Spirit, not by the written code.
[13:23] So what Jesus is saying to this church here is,
[13:29] you're the true people of God.
[13:32] because you're those whose hearts have been circumcised by the Spirit.
[13:37] You're the true children of Abraham because according to Romans 4, Abraham is the father of all those who believe.
[13:46] You are the true people of God and because of that, and that's connected to what he says just a few words earlier, you are rich.
[14:01] Yes, you're suffering terrible afflictions.
[14:06] Yes, you are deep in poverty that you can't see the end of.
[14:12] But, Jesus says, from my vantage point of the throne of heaven, let me tell you, are so,
[14:20] rich.
[14:24] Jesus speaks as one who has access to their eternal kingdom bank balance.
[14:31] And he tells them, it is abundant.
[14:37] It is abundant.
[14:39] Abundant in terms of you being co-heirs with me.
[14:41] He's saying, in my inheritance, think of Ephesians 1, the Holy Spirit given as a seal of the promise of the inheritance that is to come.
[14:49] Romans 8, the idea of the Spirit testifying that we are heirs, heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.
[14:57] And then a really interesting line linked with this letter, if indeed we share in his sufferings, in order that we may also share in his glory.
[15:08] There is a pattern here.
[15:10] There's a kingdom pattern.
[15:11] There's a Jesus pattern.
[15:16] And in your faithfulness to me, Jesus says, and to my name in the face of these deep afflictions and suffering and poverty, you are also adding to those riches.
[15:26] You're storing up for yourselves, Matthew 6, treasures in heaven.
[15:30] You're providing, Luke 12, purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
[15:42] You are rich and you're getting richer.
[15:47] With every act, every day, every moment of faithfulness, compound interest upon interest.
[15:58] And I've read and heard it said that this church in Smyrna needed to hear this truth as a sort of counterweight as they struggled with the reality of the daily poverty that they were facing.
[16:13] But I think they knew it already.
[16:16] I think it was just so encouraging to hear the truth they knew already confirmed by Jesus speaking it over them.
[16:25] Because their faithfulness in the midst of what they've gone through already proves that they know about their spiritual riches.
[16:32] They trust in the faithfulness of him.
[16:36] They already know they are rich, but how good it is to hear it.
[16:44] And then Jesus goes on in verse 10.
[16:46] And as I was reading this and reading it over this week, I was thinking, if I was in this situation, what might I be expecting Jesus to say next?
[16:56] Or what might I be hoping for Jesus to say next?
[16:58] And of course, I would imagine all of us would be in the same boat.
[17:01] We would be hoping he would be saying, I am going to lift you out of this suffering.
[17:07] I'm going to alleviate this persecution that you're going through.
[17:11] But look, that's not what he says here.
[17:18] And this is hard.
[17:19] How hard must this have been for them to hear, how hard it is for us to hear.
[17:24] Do not be afraid of what you're about to suffer.
[17:28] There's more to come.
[17:29] I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you and you will suffer persecution beyond what you've been suffering for 10 days.
[17:37] Be faithful even to the point of death.
[17:41] How stark.
[17:46] I'm not going to lift you out of this.
[17:49] In fact, it's going to get worse.
[17:53] Some of you are even going to be put in prison.
[17:57] Some of you are going to face suffering to the point of death.
[17:59] And
[18:03] we struggle to hear that.
[18:08] I would imagine they did, but The thing is, if we look just inside this a little bit, we see there's so much comfort even within this seemingly stark declaration.
[18:19] Because first of all, for example, the first and the last, the one in whose hands their lives and ultimate destiny are safe and secure, he declares, do not be afraid.
[18:32] in his presence, in his example going before them, walking through that suffering on the road to glory, he says to them, do not be afraid.
[18:41] I am the one who holds the stars in my right hand.
[18:43] I'm the one who walks among the lampstand.
[18:45] Second then, there is comfort in the limits that Jesus places on the devil's testing of them.
[18:52] You will suffer persecution, he says, for 10 days.
[19:00] Now we might be asking, is he talking about 10 days literally?
[19:03] Is he talking about 10 days symbolically?
[19:05] Well, like the stars last week, there's a great difference of opinion on that.
[19:12] It could well be literal.
[19:13] The Romans didn't actually put people in prison for that long anyway.
[19:18] Either you'd be released or you would go to your death most of the time.
[19:24] It could also be symbolic, it could be both.
[19:29] But there's definite symbolism in here as well when we think about
[19:34] what Jesus said to them as the true people of God, them being the true people of God.
[19:40] Because there's been so much allusion to Daniel already.
[19:43] And if we think about where else in scripture has there been this picture of 10 days of testing, well, it's in Daniel 1.
[19:53] If you know the story, you'll remember Daniel going to the guard, whom the chief official had appointed, over him and Hananiah and Mishael and Azariah, and saying, please test your servant for 10 days.
[20:05] Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink.
[20:08] Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.
[20:15] So he agreed to this and tested them for 10 days.
[20:19] At the end of the 10 days, they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food.
[20:25] You see the connection here.
[20:28] Daniel and his friends, faithful.
[20:35] to their God, the church in Smyrna, you're going to be tested for 10 days.
[20:45] But I'm going to put a limit on it because ultimately it is not the devil who is in control of all things.
[20:50] It is me.
[20:51] Now, let's be clear.
[20:53] This is a difficult message.
[21:00] It raises questions for us.
[21:01] Jesus, in his sovereignty, he allows them to go through this limited period of testing by the devil.
[21:10] But here's the thing.
[21:12] While the devil's purpose is the destruction and the dismantling of the lampstand of this church in Smyrna, Jesus is the opposite and he will thwart and subvert what the devil is doing through what the devil is trying to do.
[21:28] He changes it all.
[21:31] Because his purpose
[21:35] is growth and glory and refining.
[21:40] Think of 1 Peter 1, in all this you greatly rejoice, Peter says, to this church, another church that is suffering.
[21:49] In all this you greatly rejoice, looking at the inheritance that will be theirs, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief and all kinds of trials.
[21:58] These have come
[22:01] from Jesus' perspective, so that the proven genuineness of your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire, may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.
[22:15] In other words, no painful experience, tears, sorrow, struggle.
[22:23] Not one ounce of it is wasted in Jesus' plans and purposes, in what he allows us to go through.
[22:33] Do not be afraid.
[22:37] And then comes this promise then to this church, be faithful even to the point of death and I will give you life as a victor's crown.
[22:49] here's this repeated refrain.
[22:51] Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
[22:54] The one who is victorious, the one who conquers, will not be hurt at all by the second death.
[23:01] So here we have to this church in Smyrna where crowns were royal diadems and where victor's wreaths in the games were so part of the cultural identity of the city.
[23:13] And Jesus, the first and the last, the one who died and came to life again, promises them this gift, a victor's crown.
[23:21] Life as a victor's crown.
[23:25] In this city where public games took place in the city's large stadium, The athletic imagery of sacrifice and of discipline and pain and suffering and refining for the goal of receiving this victor's wreath would have been-- the metaphor just would have been so clear and obvious to them.
[23:51] Look at what athletes go through just for this little piece of plants around their head.
[23:59] What you go through is for life.
[24:02] eternal life in me as your victor's crown.
[24:11] In the midst of your suffering, Jesus says, you conquer in your faithfulness to me, the ultimate conqueror of death and the devil, the one who holds the keys of death and hades.
[24:23] And you can be sure of this, my promise.
[24:27] of this.
[24:27] Eternal life is the wreath of victory that will be placed upon your head.
[24:33] That second death, that one that is the crucial one, the one that really matters according to Revelation 20, that is the ultimate destiny of anyone whose name is not found in the Lamb's book of life.
[24:46] But that second death will not touch you.
[24:49] It will not claim you because I, the Lamb, have already claimed you for myself.
[25:00] Whatever you're going through now, you're going to receive that victor's crown.
[25:06] And
[25:09] this is what the Lord Jesus has to say to this suffering church in Smyrna.
[25:17] But as we hear those words again then, whoever has ears Let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
[25:23] As we look at this church very different to ours,
[25:28] what might we need to see, hear, discern?
[25:33] In the words of Revelation 1, take to heart what is written.
[25:39] Because like I said, in terms of circumstances, We feel worlds apart from the suffering church in Smyrna.
[25:47] We feel worlds apart from what we've just seen on the screen of China.
[25:51] We meet and we worship freely and openly.
[25:55] First of all, how grateful are we for this?
[25:59] We can proclaim our allegiance to Christ from the rooftops.
[26:04] We can share our faith on our social media pages.
[26:09] And yes, Some people might say the odd nasty thing about us, but nobody's coming to get us.
[26:19] Not yet.
[26:25] And as I've reflected on this and prayed through this during the week, the word that keeps bouncing around my mind is the word trajectory.
[26:35] In terms of where we are as a church,
[26:39] the affliction the church in Smyrna was suffering might not be our reality right now, but are we so complacent?
[26:49] Are we so arrogant to think that our current freedoms will always be what we have right now in 10 years, in 15 years, in 20 years?
[27:04] Now, hear me right, this is not me making any sort of predictions.
[27:08] But For example,
[27:12] how ready might you be 10 years from now if that dream job that you just got the year before that you've been working for 10, 15 years for
[27:26] came under threat that your employer comes to you and tells you, know, you've got to renounce this faith that you have in Jesus.
[27:35] Or else That job's going to be terminated as per the small print in the contract.
[27:43] Or in 20 years time, if your loyalty to him means you refusing to do something that places you in trouble with our authority.
[27:55] Or if allegiance to Jesus means that you are disowned by your family.
[28:05] In another video that I watched on that Open Doors website this week, there was the story of a lady from Afghanistan who had come to faith in Christ.
[28:16] And she was in hiding.
[28:18] And she said she received a message from her brother saying, I hear you've renounced your faith.
[28:24] If you've made a mistake, I will come and rescue you.
[28:27] But if you
[28:29] haven't, I'll come and find you and I will kill you myself.
[28:36] That may not be our reality right now.
[28:38] It is the reality of many across the world.
[28:41] And that's where this word trajectory comes in for me.
[28:44] The call be faithful even to the point of death might seem a bit immaterial to us here in Northern Ireland in 2026.
[28:51] But the first two words, be faithful, they're certainly not immaterial.
[28:59] They're certainly not irrelevant.
[29:01] Jesus' words from the parable are ringing in my ears.
[29:05] Faithful in little, faithful in much.
[29:13] So think about a couple of examples.
[29:16] And we all know where the rubber hits the road with us in terms of this call to be faithful today.
[29:22] But what about if you are a fresher?
[29:24] You might be starting university tomorrow.
[29:28] And you're going into your first lectures and tutorials, and you want to make friends, and you want these people to like you and accept you.
[29:37] We're all wired that way.
[29:39] We all want that.
[29:41] And yet you have to make that very simple
[29:46] act of faithfulness, but it's excruciating as well to tell those people that you're a Christian, that you're a follower of Jesus.
[29:56] and all the baggage that comes with it.
[30:01] Do not be afraid.
[30:03] Jesus says, be faithful.
[30:05] Or perhaps this week you're some sort of rising star in your company.
[30:10] You might be offered that promotion that you've been waiting for, that promotion that allows you to swap up in the house and the car and the holidays.
[30:21] And there's nothing, of course, inherently wrong with accepting a promotion, but you know yourself.
[30:28] If you truly examine yourself, you know your heart, you know deep down that your whole life is now aimed at earthly riches and kudos and approval and comfort.
[30:40] And when you actually look at yourself and you dare to ask yourself, what riches have I truly stored up for myself in heaven, you don't really want to hear the answer.
[30:52] Because where your focus has been.
[30:54] what you've been faithful to.
[30:55] You've been faithful to this world and to your riches and to your approval in this world.
[31:06] And so to take that promotion, like I say, not inherently a bad thing in itself, but for you, where you are,
[31:14] it's just digging out those grooves of unfaithfulness.
[31:19] even further.
[31:21] Because if you're honest, career is an idol.
[31:27] And again, Jesus says, do not be afraid, be faithful.
[31:32] There are all sorts of situations and circumstances
[31:38] in this room today.
[31:39] We are not today yet being called even to the point of death.
[31:44] But we are today, right now, in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in, being called to sacrificial faithfulness.
[31:53] And it looks like, according to Jesus, these words of his in Luke 9, then he said to them all, I'm going to invite the band to come back out just as I finish, whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily.
[32:11] There is something for you, there is something for me to be faithful in a sacrificial way today, daily.
[32:22] And follow me, for whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.
[32:30] Whoever loses their life for me will receive that victor's crown.
[32:33] Here is the call for us.
[32:36] Today, in what is in front of you,
[32:41] Do not be afraid.
[32:45] Be faithful.
[32:48] Today, whatever it has for you, take up your cross, Jesus says, and follow me.
[32:56] Be faithful in the little today.
[33:00] Dig out those grooves of faithfulness today.
[33:03] Keep on renewing that heavenly perspective on your richness today so that if that day be faithful even to the point of death ever comes for
[33:18] you, will be able to be faithful.
[33:23] It'll be like a muscle memory thing.
[33:29] It's just what you'll do because it's what you've always done.
[33:35] As you hold fast to the promise of the first or the last, the one who died and came to life again, that promise again as we look ahead
[33:47] of the victor's crown of life being placed on our heads.
[33:54] Be faithful.
[33:56] Can I invite you to stand with me?
[34:01] As we think through, and as we take a moment just to actually ask
[34:11] the Lord, where does the rubber hit the road with me here?
[34:17] Where today am I being called?
[34:19] And I would imagine many of us in the room will have one thing that is just sticking out in our minds.
[34:26] To be faithful, to not be afraid, but be faithful.
[34:33] Let me remind you as we reflect on this that if you want somebody to pray with you about any of that, then the prayer room and our prayer team are available.
[34:41] Let me remind you again, as we've been doing in these weeks, that I'm going to go out for this resource room on the side shortly after the service, about 5 minutes after we finish, and just take about 10 minutes with whoever's with me to pray in response to this teaching and this letter.
[34:59] So what do you need to hear?
[35:01] Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
[35:08] Do you need to hear the truth of who Jesus is?
[35:10] I am the first and the last.
[35:14] I'm the one who died and came to life again.
[35:19] Do you need to hear this morning, I know your afflictions.
[35:31] Your great high priest who knows, who empathizes, who intercedes for you at the throne of God.
[35:40] Perhaps you need to hear Jesus tell you in your pursuit of earthly riches and how that has grabbed your heart, that you are already spiritually rich, that you are rich in a way that no moth can destroy, that no thief can steal, Because let's be honest, death will steal all those riches that you're pursuing right now.
[36:05] Perhaps some of us might be entering into, some of us might be in the middle of our 10 days in that sense.
[36:18] And we need to hear again Jesus' words, do not be afraid.
[36:26] And all of us, as this church, we all need to hear those words, be faithful and
[36:37] we need to think about and pray through and respond to the circumstance, the relationship, the choice, the situation that the Holy Spirit is pinpointing for us in terms of what that means today, in terms of what that will mean tomorrow.
[36:56] so that we might be a lampstand of faithfulness because that's what
[37:05] responding to your first love looks like.
[37:11] Whoever wants to be my disciple, Jesus says, must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.
[37:16] Father,
[37:20] as we hold this letter up, as that mirror to ourselves.
[37:25] As we allow your word that was spoken to this church
[37:32] in the 90s AD speak to us today in 2026.
[37:36] Would you
[37:39] bring your word with conviction?
[37:44] Will you show us again who you are, your faithfulness through your son?
[37:50] your absolute trustworthiness,
[37:54] even in the midst of situations where that gets obscured to us.
[38:01] And may you empower us to be faithful in the little things today
[38:07] as we
[38:11] set our hope on that victor's crown that will be placed on our heads.
[38:21] Thank you that Jesus is the 1st and the last.
[38:27] Again, the faithful witness whom we can trust completely.
[38:33] Help us to do that.
[38:33] Help us to live our lives out of that deep trust we pray in his name.
[38:39] Amen.