INTRO: We are in the letter to the church at Smyrna. Smyrna is the counselee in this letter. The counselor is the One described as the First and the Last, which is Almighty God; and He is described as the One who was dead and came to life, and that is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, who is also the Almighty or Jehovah God.
This description will have been a great comfort to this church that was suffering tribulation and would yet suffer great persecution. Having been raised in a very ungodly society, these believers of Smyrna had become a very godly people. Without question they lived holy lives in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation. This righteous life, included in what the Lord said when He said He knew their works, had been very costly to them. And now they are suffering tribulation, that is various kinds of trouble.
I expect from what is revealed it will have affected their employment and livelihood for it is said they were poor. Not only were they poor, but they were beggarly poor. You see this word tribulation, thlipsis, has the idea of pressure. Many people who claim to be Christians will only bear so much pressure, and then they give in.
Featuring a sermon puts it on the front page of the site and is the most effective way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands including all mobile platforms + newsletter.
Text-Featuring a sermon is a less expensive way to bring this sermon to the attention of thousands on the right bar with optional newsletter inclusion. As low as $30/day.
