The Church at Smyrna | Revelation 2:8-13 | J. Allen Mashburn

In this beautiful, wealthy pagan city, there existed a struggling Christian community.  The church in Smyrna was undergoing intense and withering persecution.  The Lord Jesus comes to them with a word of comfort for their dark days.  He tells them that even though they appear to be so week and so poor, they are, in fact, rich beyond imagination.   

Prophetically, this church pictures the terrible persecution inflicted upon believers by the Roman emperors between the years of 100 AD and 312 AD.  Practically and personally, there is a word here for everyone who has ever or will ever suffer for Jesus’ sake.  Let’s look at our Lord’s words to this struggling little congregation to find the encouragement we need to be able to stand when everyone else is against us.