“To the angel of the church in Sardis write”. Revelation 3:1
As the Lord selects the churches to write to in Asia Minor He picks ones that instruct us in the age we live. To understand the intent of His message to His church it is important to know something about the city. One of the the most important parts of Sardis’s history is how it was captured. Remember that Sardis was considered virtually impregnable. It enjoyed natural fortifications provided by steep cliffs surrounding it. Located high on a plateau high above the valley of Hermus, Sardis was accessible by one single narrow road. Thus the city’s citizens believed that the city was safe and could not be captured by any invading force.
One of the lessons from the Lord to Sardis is that looks can be
deceiving. Scripture teaches us “let him who thinks he stands
take heed lest he fall”. Sardis teaches us that truth.
King Croesus of Sardis learned that Cyrus of Persia was becoming
increasingly powerful and he determined to to stop his power before it became too great. He consulted the Oracle at Delphi which told him “If you cross the river you will destroy a great Empire.” Little did he know it would be his own. He initiated an attack against Cyrus, king of Persia, but was soundly defeated. Returning to Sardis to recoup and rebuild his army for another attack, Cyrus pursued him and laid siege against Sardis. Despite the threat Croesus Croesus believed the city was impregnable and safe from the Persians.
The soldiers guarding Sardis were told the city could not be breeched and they became careless. For days the invading Persians scouted the city. One of the Persian soldiers observed a guard lose his helmet over the cliff. He watched as that soldier followed a secret path down the steep slope of the mountain cliffs to retrieve the helmet. The Persian spy reported this weakness in Sardis’s defense to Cyrus and the following evening the Persian army ascended that same path into the city. When thee Persian army came to the city walls they found them unguarded. They let themselves into the city and quickly conquered it. Here we learn a second lesson. Satan observes his enemy’s (the church) defense and looks for weaknesses. When he finds them he will attempt to enter through unguarded passageways to capture and destroy it.
Surely the city of Sardis would learn from its past. That, however, was not to be the case. Several centuries later (214 BC) the army of Antiochus the Great (the Father of the Little Horn in Daniel) attacked Sardis. Using the same strategy as the Persians, the city was captured once again. The city, its leaders and its soldiers had once again grown self-confident, complacent and lazy. They did not learn from their own past. When we come to John’s letter to Sardis, the city is captive again, this time ruled by the Romans. In 17 A. D. a massive
earthquake leveled the city, turning it into rubble. The Roman, Tiberius Caesar, rebuilt it and Sardis regained its prosperity but under the rule of Rome. Sardis never regained its freedom. When John wrote to
the church at Sardis, the city was outwardly prosperous but inwardly it was dying. Thus the Lord speaks to His church in a complacent, comatose, dying city – a church that is in danger of becoming like its city.