During the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony in Paris, drag queens mock the Lord’s supper, mimicking the apostles’ seating depicted in Leonardo de Vinci’s famed painting.

In Washington, D.C., pro-Hamas protestors flung feces at the police tasked with controlling and dispelling them.

View Comments (1)

Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakes finds himself back in the court system after being vindicated by the U.S. Supreme Court when someone wanted to compel him to violate his religious beliefs to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding.

Despite that victory, Colorado’s Civil Rights Commission is peopled by those who called Jack a hater for wanting to stand by his beliefs and his savior. When someone wanted a cake that celebrated a gender transition, the commission pursued it until Phillips’ lawyers found such clear evidence of bias on the commission that the latter dismissed the charges.

But Phillips’ foe will not quit, so he is pursuing the case in state courts. The case again is headed to a higher court.

Jack Phillips is living in a spiritual Smyrna.

We are most familiar with Smyrna from the Book of Revelation, which was written by John the apostle while he was in exile on Patmos in Asia Minor.

Smyrna—now modern Izmir in Turkey—was north of Ephesus by some 35 miles. Its strategic harbor could be closed off in times of war. Smyrna was garlanded by a mountain rising from the harbor and a street known as the Street of Gold. This street ran from a temple to the false goddess Cybele to one dedicated to Zeus.

The city had a thriving and vital culture, with a stadium, library, and theatre supported by a population of 200,000. The famed poet Homer hailed from Smyrna.

Politics also thrived in Smyrna. The city fathers fortuitously supported Rome before the latter built its empire. Therefore, the city became a center for emperor worship. In 195 B.C., the city built a temple to the Roman goddess Roma, and later, in 23 B.C., Smyrna won the honor of building a temple for emperor Tiberius.

In addition to the pagan cults and emperor worship, the city boasted a large Jewish population, which was increasingly hostile to Christians. The Roman government initially confused Christians with Jews, which benefited the nascent church because Jews enjoyed a religious exemption from formal emperor worship. They were only required to make offerings for the emperor’s health.

As Jewish hostility toward the Christians grew, Jewish leadership disavowed the latter to the Romans, making the believers vulnerable to government pressure to engage in heretical emperor worship.

Christians found it very difficult to live in Smyrna.

But the Lord sees His people. In the second of his letters in Revelation 2:8-11, the Lord says:

“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write,

‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: 

‘I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.’”

Jesus saw the persecution impoverishing the Christians materially. The word for poverty in this letter is for the poorest of the poor. And yet the Lord asserts the Christians are spiritually rich.

Jesus also heard the blasphemous words spoken against the Christians by others, including Jews who had not recognized their Messiah.

“Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

In response to what He sees and hears, Jesus tells His people — literally — to “stop being afraid.”

“Stop being afraid” despite the possibility — even probability — that they will be imprisoned without provision while awaiting trial or execution. And Jesus warns in this letter that this persecution is not the “three and a half days” of tribulation more common in Revelation. Rather the persecution is of greater duration — not a literal 10 days, but long.

Jesus tells His people to stop being afraid and to be faithful, even if their circumstances end in death.

Those who are faithful will receive a garland usually associated with athletic victors.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”

Jesus calls His people to listen:  Pay attention and conquer. This verb nikao (“to conquer”) and its derivatives appear 17 times in Revelation. The Greek in this verse communicates a firm assurance that the faithful will conquer.

One such conquerer is another of Smyrna’s famous sons: Polycarp, the bishop or pastor of Smyrna’s second-century church. When he faced his death in 156 A.D., he reportedly said, “Eighty and six years have I served Christ, nor has He ever done me any harm. How, then, could I blaspheme my King who saved Me?”

We know many others facing literal death in nations in which confessing Christ is anathema to the government or dominant culture: Nigeria, Iran, China, and North Korea, to name a few. Sadly, in America, we see state governments, such as Colorado, and significant swathes of the U.S. federal government actively hostile toward believers.

In many ways, this culture is a spiritual Smyrna.

Jack Phillips has chosen to stay faithful, despite being targeted for financial destruction by those who hate Christ.

May we, living in our spiritual Smyrna, take to heart the message of this encouraging letter to the people of Smyrna and the testimony of Polycarp: Let us stay faithful, not fearful.

Lord, please enable us to stay faithful — not fearful — in our seasons of tribulation. Give us spiritual courage from the first and the last, who died and came to life. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Share your testimony of staying faithful, not fearful.

New York City–based Joyce Swingle is an intercessor and a contributing writer for IFA. With her husband, Rich, also a contributing writer for IFA, Joyce shares the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world through theater, speaking, writing, and film. Prior to going into full-time ministry, Joyce worked for about 20 major magazines and now works in pastoral ministry and Christian counseling. www.Richdrama.com.