Are We Really Alive? (Revelation 3:1-6)
It was the “Gibraltar of the East”—Britain’s impregnable fortress in Asia. This was what Britain’s wartime prime minister, Winston Churchill, called Singapore. The nickname reflected widespread confidence in the island’s invincibility. Singapore was a symbol of Britain’s power and dominance in the region. Many British troops were stationed here. Singapore had one of the world’s largest naval bases. It had extensive coastal defences, including many big guns, that could repel attacks from the sea. Singapore was famous for its strength and security.
But alas, reality fell far short of reputation. The British were actually ill-prepared for war. They thought an attack would come from the sea in the south; they did not expect an overland invasion from the north. The British had no tanks in the whole of Malaya. Its air force consisted mostly of obsolete fighter planes. Few British troops were trained for jungle warfare. Perhaps pride prevented Britain’s leaders from seeing the problems. They relied on reputation, not realising that the reality was very different. Confidence turned out to be complacency. The Imperial Japanese Army exposed the cracks. In just eight days after Japanese troops landed on the island, Singapore fell on February 15, 1942. Some 80,000 Allied troops surrendered. Churchill called it “the worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history”.
There are parallels between Singapore and Sardis, which was once one of the most powerful cities in the ancient world. Surrounded by cliffs and walls, Sardis had a reputation for being safe and strong. But reality fell far short of reputation. The people of Sardis were not very watchful. Thinking the city secure, they carelessly left key points unguarded. In 547 BC, the Persians conquered Sardis, after its soldiers climbed up the steep mountain-side and entered the city unchallenged. You would think Sardis would learn its lesson, but it fell again in 214 BC. This time, the Seleucids under Antiochus III conquered Sardis using similar tactics.
Like the city’s inattentive watchmen, the church in Sardis was also coasting along in a state of spiritual slumber. Sardis was sleepwalking towards spiritual disaster. They urgently needed a wake-up call. Like Sardis, how might we also need to wake up? Maybe we think we are doing okay because we are not as bad as other people. Maybe we think we are alright because of how fervently we used to follow Jesus and all the ways we served in the past. Or, some of us may be content to be regular church goers, but our lives during the week look no different from the world around us. We are known as “Christians”, but does the reality line up with our reputation?
Jesus calls us to wake up, that we may truly live.
How are we doing as a church? In August 67 years ago, Grace Baptist Church was established. As we celebrate our anniversary and give thanks for God’s faithfulness in the past, we ought to also take stock of our present condition. Does reality live up to our reputation as a gospel-preaching, Bible-believing church? Is it evident that we are living out the truth we profess to believe? Are we really alive? Jesus’ words to the church in Sardis challenge us to examine ourselves. This is the big idea: Jesus calls us to wake up, that we may truly live. We will unpack this in two points: (1) Wake up and strengthen what remains; (2) Conquer and live.
Wake up and strengthen what remains (Rev 3: 1-3)
In each of the letters to the seven churches, the opening description of Jesus is especially appropriate for their respective circumstances. Regardless of their situation, what each church needs is Jesus. Whether in good or bad times, what we need the most is to behold the glory of Christ. The church does not need worldly wisdom or man-made methods of success; it needs to look and listen to the Lord.
Jesus is exactly who the church in Sardis needs. Look at Revelation 3:1. He says to the angel of the church in Sardis: “The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.” Like the other descriptions of Jesus, this one is also taken from Revelation 1. There, we see how Jesus holds the seven stars in his right hand (Rev 1:16). The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches (Rev 1:20), sent by God to serve and represent each of the churches. Jesus holding them in His right hand shows His sovereignty and authority over the churches. We are answerable to the Lord, the Head of the Church. He who calls Sardis to account will also judge us.
The Lord has the seven spirits of God. This refers to the Holy Spirit. “Seven” symbolises perfection and fulness. Jesus possesses the fulness of the perfect Spirit, who is also fully God. Revelation 1 describes the Spirit as being before the throne of God the Father (Rev 1:4). Behold the glory of the Trinity. Here, we see how Jesus is the one who has and sends the Spirit. This is what the church in Sardis needs. It is dying, if not already dead. What can revive them? Only the life-giving, regenerating and renewing Spirit—whom Jesus pours out on his people. The Spirit of the Lord can bring a dying or dead church back to life.
We are made alive by the Spirit. Spiritual life is a gift from the Lord, by his grace. We cannot give ourselves life. Therefore, we must return to the Lord and rely on him who has the Spirit. As the LORD says in Zechariah 4:6: “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.” Revival is the Lord’s work by his Spirit, not ours. This should motivate us to pray, personally and together as a church. It was so encouraging to gather last Sunday to pray for the church plant. Let us come together again today to pray at our prayer meeting after the service.
Jesus diagnoses the state of the Sardisian church in Revelation 3:1: I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. In the other letters, Jesus notices the faithfulness of his people, even amid their struggles. For example, He commends the church in Thyatira for its love, faith, service and patient endurance, in spite of its serious problems (Rev 2:19). Sardis, however, is not commended. The Lord, who knows their works, warns them not to hide behind their reputation. The church is known for being alive. Maybe their Sunday worship is vibrant. Maybe they have many ministries and programmes. Maybe the number of people going to Sardis Church is growing. Compared with the other churches, it is striking how seemingly “smooth” things are at Sardis. There is no mention of false teaching, idolatry, sexual immorality, persecution or suffering. On the surface, Sardis seems fine. They are just cruising along. Maybe this describes us too. We are content to coast.
How do we assess a church’s life? How do we evaluate our own spiritual health? Perhaps we tend to focus on the externals — on KPIs we can see and quantify, like activities and attendance. We may think we are alright because of how much we are doing or used to do. Others may even see us as “active” or “long-time Christians”. Like Sardis, we may have the reputation for being alive. But are we, really? What finally matters most is not how others see us, but what the Lord thinks of us.
Nominal Christianity is not biblical Christianity at all.
The Lord, who sees all and knows all, is not impressed by reputation. He looks past the externals and at our hearts. He knows how we are really doing. We can hide from others; we may even deceive ourselves. But we cannot lie to the Lord. He sees Sardis’s spiritual state as it truly is. The church is dead. This shocking statement should shake Sardis out of its spiritual stupor and comfortable complacency. What does Jesus mean? He explains in Revelation 3:2: What remains of their past commitment to Christ and his gospel is about to die. Sardis used to be faithful and fervent for the Lord. Perhaps this is how they had earned the reputation for being alive. But now, Sardis is spiritually sleepy. Jesus says, “I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.” The church is giving God the Father partial, half-hearted obedience. The forms may be there, but the substance is missing. Sardis is simply going through the motions. The rot of nominalism has set in. The church is fine with being “Christian” in name only, resting on past success, living off a reputation that is no longer true. Beware of being okay with just enough “Christianity” to make you feel good about yourself, but not enough to actually save you from your sins. Shallow, nominal Christianity is dangerous. It keeps us from realising our need to truly repent and believe in Jesus. Nominal Christianity is not biblical Christianity at all.
Perhaps the Sardisian church is avoiding trouble by quietly compromising with the world. It has grown accustomed to comfortable, convenient “Christianity”. They may not be guilty of obvious sins like idolatry and immorality, but they are not doing what ought to be done. Sardis may have been tempted to avoid confessing Christ. In Revelation 3:5, Jesus promises to confess before His Father and the angels the names of those who conquer. This promise alludes to what Jesus says in Matthew 10:32: “Everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven.” The church at Sardis may have become ashamed of Christ and the gospel. There was a large Jewish community in the city. Perhaps the church was afraid of provoking Jewish opposition. Therefore, it did not publicly identify with Jesus or speak openly about Him. How might we also avoid confessing Christ to others? Have we been content to blend in with the world, rather than being different and distinct?
Jesus speaks hard truths to Sardis because he loves his church and desires good for his people. Listen to the Lord, who speaks honestly and clearly to us through his word. Jesus urges Sardis to wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die. This is an urgent call to be alert and watchful. Awake from spiritual slumber. Stop being spiritually sluggish. It is not too late to return to the Lord. He can revive and revitalise us by the Spirit. Hear and heed Jesus’ wake-up call. Do not hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. Do not delay or it will be too late. Beloved, the hour has come for us to wake from sleep. The day of the Lord’s return is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
This is the Lord’s solution for spiritual sleepiness. Look at Revelation 3:3: Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. This is the remedy: Remember and repent. Remember the gospel. We tend to forget how the Lord loves us and has given Himself for us. Recall how we were once dead in our sins. We were without God and without hope in the world. But God, who is gracious and merciful, made us alive in Jesus Christ. In love, God the Father sent His Son to save sinners like us. Jesus laid down his life at the cross. He bore God’s wrath for all who turn away from their sins and trust in Him for salvation. Jesus rose from the dead to give us new life. The resurrected Lord can revive a dying or dead church. Look to the Lord of life.
The remedy to revitalise a dying church is not some new and novel method or strategy. It is the gospel that we have already received and heard.
The remedy to revitalise a dying church is not some new and novel method or strategy. No, it is the gospel that we have already received and heard. Do not go beyond the gospel; go back to it. Hold fast to what we already have in Christ. Remember His gospel, so that we keep it. Guard the gospel, in the church and in our own hearts lest we drift away. Live out the truths of the gospel. Faith without works is dead. If we say we believe in Jesus, then do our aims, attitudes and actions attest to the authenticity of our faith? For example, is Christ alone our confidence, or are we still proudly boasting of our own “righteousness” and reputation?
Remember and repent. Repent of our spiritual sluggishness. Repent of our arrogant self-righteousness and self-confidence. Repent of our compromise with the world. Repent of valuing the world’s approval more than the Lord’s. Repent of our comfortable complacency. Repent of being more concerned with appearing godly than with actual godliness. Repent of how we have obeyed the Lord partially or grudgingly. How is the Lord calling us to wake up and return to him? Today if you hear his word, do not harden your heart. The Lord is merciful and kind. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The Lord warns us in love, so that we will not have to face his final judgement. Do not presume on his patience or take his grace for granted. If we refuse to return, we will be unprepared when the Lord comes. Look again at Revelation 3:3 —”If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.” This recalls what Jesus says in Matthew 24:42, 44: “Stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming… Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Be ready for the Lord’s return. Wake up and strengthen what remains.
Conquer and live (Rev 3:4-6)
The situation in Sardis is dire, but it is not all doom and gloom. There remains a small but faithful remnant at the church. The Lord says in Revelation 3:4, “Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.” Jesus shows his personal care for his people. He is intimately aware of who his faithful followers are. He knows them by name. Their garments remain unsoiled, which means they have not compromised with the world. James 1:27 says, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” Unlike most of the church in Sardis, these continue to trust and obey Christ. They show by their works that their faith is genuine. They are worthy, not because they have earned their salvation, but because their lives faithfully demonstrate that they truly trust in Jesus. To these faithful ones, Jesus promises fellowship. Because they have kept themselves pure, they will walk with the Lord who is holy.
Be encouraged to persevere in Christ. He will never leave us or forsake us. Living for Jesus amid nominalism can be lonely and tough. I recently read an article written by a pastor about the challenges of planting a church in America’s Bible Belt, where cultural Christianity is common. He said, “The hardest soil to plant in is not unbelief. It is the illusion of belief that costs nothing.” But nominalism is not just a problem in the southern part of the US, it is a problem here too.
The results of last year’s General Household Survey has stirred up much soul searching among Christians here. According to the survey, Christianity is declining in Singapore. Protestant Christianity’s share of the nation’s resident population fell from 11.9% in 2020 to 9.5% in 2025. This is the first recorded drop after decades of growth. Commenting on the situation, one writer asked a good question: “What kind of Christianity have we actually been forming? …The deeper question is whether people have been apprenticed into a life where Christ is more beautiful than success, more secure than money, more authoritative than desire, and more precious than family approval. ”
It is hard to remain true to Christ in a church where most members are merely “Sunday Christians”. Imagine how discouraging it is when you want to live for Jesus, and others in the church tell you to tone it down, to not be so idealistic or enthusiastic. A nominal church quenches zeal for the Lord. It is a bad gospel witness. This is a reason why we must continue to make church membership meaningful. How? Remember the gospel and repent. Proclaim Christ and pray for conversions. Exercise biblical church discipline. If I am a member of a church, then it should be because the church can affirm that I am walking faithfully with Jesus. Church membership matters. It ought to faithfully reflect present, ongoing spiritual reality, and not be based on some past reputation that is no longer true.
The Lord graciously offers true life to the dying and the dead. Will we receive Him?
Beloved, Christ is calling us to return to Him. He is calling us to forsake our faithlessness, and to renew our devotion to Him. Christ calls us to conquer and live. So, remember and repent. Keep ourselves unstained from the world. Walk worthy of the gospel. Persevere in the Lord, that we might win the prize. He promises us a reward that will never fail or fade away. In Revelation 3:5-6, Jesus speaks of this reward in three ways: white garments, the book of life, and him confessing our name. All three point to this one hope: eternal life. The Lord graciously offers true life to the dying and the dead. Will we receive Him?
The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments. The white clothing symbolises purity and the forgiveness of sins. As we heard earlier from Zechariah 3, the Lord removes our filthy rags and covers our nakedness with clean clothing. Jesus is the Lamb who was slain. He died to bear the punishment for our sins, so that we can be His holy people if we trust in Him. Jesus has washed our garments white in his own blood (cf. Rev. 7:14). If we hold fast to Jesus, he will present us holy in the end. When the Lord returns, we shall celebrate his coming as His purified people. Revelation 19:7-8 reveals what we will say on that final day: “’Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure’—for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.”
To the one who conquers, Jesus also promises to never blot his name out of the book of life. The believers in Sardis were tempted to compromise with the world to avoid being ostracised and marginalised. We, too, may be fearful of confessing Christ because we want to fit in, to belong. Jesus assures us that we will always belong to Him. The world may hate and reject us, but the Lord loves us with an everlasting love. The book of life, written from the foundation of the world, records the names of all who are His. Not one will be lost. Jesus guarantees the eternal destiny of all who hold fast to Him. Jesus is not implying that some may have their names erased. Rather, He is simply stating that the one who conquers through faith in Him will surely receive the reward of eternal life. This is a wonderful assurance of our security in Christ. It encourages us to keep pressing on in him and to not give up. Jesus will never let us down. The Good Shepherd says He will guard his sheep: “I give them eternal life. and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. (Jn 10:28)”
We conquer by keeping our faith in Christ to the end. If we confess his name, he will confess ours. This is His promise to us: “I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.” Many of us have attended graduation ceremonies. The proudest moment is when our name or the name of our loved one is called. We then step forward to receive an award. On that great and awesome day, when we appear before God, Jesus will proudly proclaim the names of all who have endured to the end. On that day, we can be completely confident that we are fully justified and accepted in Christ. He is not ashamed to call us His brothers and sisters. So, do not be ashamed of the gospel or of the Lord. If we deny Him, He will deny us. May it not be so for us. May the Lord Jesus say to each one of us, “You are mine. You belong to me, for I have bought you with my precious blood.”
As Singapore celebrates its National Day today, it is timely to remember the lessons of the past. The fall of Singapore during the war was a painful but formative experience for a nation on the road to independence. May we also learn from history and listen to what the Lord has spoken to the church in Sardis. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. This is a word for all churches, including our church today. When it comes to our spiritual state, does reality live up to reputation? Are we truly trusting in the Lord and holding fast to the faith we profess to believe? Not everyone who says to Jesus, “Lord, Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven. We can talk the talk, but are we also walking the walk? Do our lives show that we are following the Lord Jesus? Are we really alive?